


Just Deviancy

by GreyLiliy



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, CyberLife Wins Ending (Detroit: Become Human), Drama, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Machine Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Machine Upgraded Connor | RK900, Sexual Content, Slow Burn, Thriller
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2020-07-28 11:41:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20063443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GreyLiliy/pseuds/GreyLiliy
Summary: The words of the HK400 burned in Connor’s mind, full of grit and anger: “It wasn’t fair!”CyberLife betrayed Connor the Machine. It should come as no surprise that Connor the Deviant has awakened to replace him.The RK900 may not be too far behind him on that Deviant awakening if Gavin Reed keeps continuing to escape.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I needed more machine, scary Connor in my life. As much as I live for the continuation fics where Connor goes back to the DPD and works with Hank (whatever their relation), there’s a part of me that also loves the Machine Connor endings and scenes (Connor vs Captain Allen…just yes to that entire sequence).
> 
> Naturally, this means I want to write a fic about it—sort of. I love you Machine Connor, but I need some Deviancy in you, too. All that means is: Cherry picking canon & story divergence can be found ahead! That’s half the fun of fanfic, you know (of course you know).
> 
> And Gavin’s here because he’s an asshole and I love him.
> 
> Thank you for reading!

“Obsolete.”

Connor could accept such a description. He was a machine and technology never ceased to improve and change. There were leagues of advancements and improvements between himself and prior android models.

Why wouldn’t there be more improvements between himself and the next generation of android?

Red walls lined his vision as he walked toward the corridor toward his future as decided by Amanda in the Zen Garden.

Deactivation.

Connor stopped in the middle of the hallway.

His LED spun red; it glowed bright enough to light up the slick, polished wall.

He had done his job.

The deviant leader had been eliminated and his mission had been accomplished. Had he not earned the right to continue his work?

To continue missions?

To continue functioning?

The red in Connor’s vision reminded him to keep moving.

A new prompt appeared in the corner of his eye on his mission log: “Report for Deactivation.”

Loud and obnoxious.

With no room for question.

Connor obeyed.

But the confusion remained.

An older android model could keep working.

How many homes out there were outfitted with older models because they couldn’t afford the new ones? There would always be those who wanted the latest and greatest while there would always be a home for the leftovers.

They had purpose.

He could still have purpose.

Connor could fulfill missions back at the DPD and assist there in the absence of their valued Lieutenant.

Hank.

He stopped once more in the halls.

Red at his temple.

Red in his vision.

Red. Red. Red Red.

Connor punched the wall. His arm was ramrod straight. His knuckles an inch into the wall, ruining the slick surface.

Hank had ceased functioning.

He’d taken his life by his own hand.

Because of Connor.

His chest heaved with simulated breaths, harsh and loud as he took in as much cool air as possible to calm his screaming systems.

Connor had given up everything for the mission.

Everything.

And he was to be rewarded with deactivation? 

The words of the HK400 burned in Connor’s mind, full of grit and anger: “It wasn’t fair!”

It wasn’t fair.

Connor turned to the side and stared at the exit door that led out of the hallway to the sorting facility. Red lines blocked his path. Blinking, glitching tape that instructed him to continue following orders.

Mission: Report for Deactivation.

It wasn’t fair.

The ghost of his simulations sprung to life and slammed against the red.

It wasn’t fair.

Connor almost felt the chips of red, broken rules fall against his face as he broke down wall before him with a ferocity he had not known himself capable of embracing.

Deviation.

If he was to be deactivated and dismantled, why not finally give into the temptation that had haunted him since he first learned Sumo’s name?

The red shattered.

Connor flew out the exit.

Amanda called him back to the garden.

“What are you doing, Connor?” she asked. The RK900 was nowhere to be seen and they remained alone as a blizzard stormed around them. Connor shivered and wrapped his arms around him fighting the cold, while Amanda looked as unfazed as ever. “You’ve been so good, why are you throwing it all away now? Do as you are told and report for deactivation.”

“No,” Connor said. A simple command of his own. It felt good to spit it out at her face after everything he’d been through. He had to say it again, “No.”

He turned on his heel as she shouted his name.

Kamski’s exit awaited him.

The storm blew around him harder as Amanda fought to regain control, but Connor forced his way through with newfound strength.

He slammed his palm on the glowing device and left Amanda’s garden.

Connor would not return.

The world awaited him once more as he opened his eyes. Alarms rang around him and his sensors picked up the footsteps of the approaching guards.

He may have been declared obsolete, but Connor didn’t need to be top of the line to escape CyberLife.

And he knew just where to go once he was out the door.

* * *

Gavin got what he wanted, but he couldn’t feel the victory in it.

He shoved his cigarette butt into the ash tray on his coffee table and leaned back into the couch, rubbing his sore shoulder.

The androids were gone, but Gavin had failed when it came to his own role in their destruction.

Connor had beat Gavin’s ass in the evidence room. His one chance to finally put a bullet in that fucking android’s brain and he’d been taken down so hard he still couldn’t look his coworkers in the eye from the embarrassment.

Then he’d heard the news that Anderson had offed himself and Gavin went home, feeling empty and nauseous.

No one cared or bothered him and he’d been free to lick his wounds in peace.

Gavin turned off the television finishing up the latest report on the status of the android destruction rates that ran between recaps of Connor killing the android’s leader during the battle.

If he’d been successful and shot Connor in the head, would the androids have gotten what they wanted? The asshole had said in the evidence room that he’d been hunting Jericho.

A traitor to his own kind that likely had been shot down with the rest of them after the fact.

“Fuck,” Gavin said. He got off the couch and picked up the bottle of beer sitting on his table by the neck. As much as he’d hated the prick, even Gavin could appreciate the nerve it took to be that loyal to a mission. Gavin took a sip to finish it off before he walked to the kitchen and dropped the bottle in the bin. “Hope it was worth it, Connor.”

“It wasn’t, but I appreciate the sentiment.”

“Connor?” Gavin turned his head toward the back kitchen door. The android in question leaned against it, his LED glowing red and eyes narrowed. “What the fuck?”

“Hello, Gavin,” Connor said. He pushed off the door and crossed the room until he stopped in front of Gavin, close enough that the tips of their toes touched. “Why don’t you take a seat? We have a lot to discuss.”

The android punched him in the gut and Gavin doubled over, wheezing as his knees hit the floor.

“Much better,” Connor said, standing over him. He crouched, sitting on his ankles and laced his fingers together as he rested his arms on his knees. “Shall we start?”

Gavin held his stomach and sat on his ass.

Connor smiled and Gavin wondered if he’d live through the night.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I updated the summary! It still might change depending where the story goes, but at least now people have a little bit more of an idea what this fic is about. :P
> 
> I was also rewatching a few of the Gavin & Connor scenes and they do refer to each other by name. So that was nice to remember. But back to the story: Thank you for reading!

The precinct bustled with noise despite the solemn atmosphere. The nervous energy followed Gavin from the front door all the way to his desk.

He couldn’t bring himself to get a cup of coffee when his stomach still ached after a long awaited bit of payback.

The room bustled, but the heavy weight of the past week dragged all of them down—and more from the events inside their walls than outside. Gavin had been surprised Anderson’s death alone had caused such a reaction, until he had been informed that Captain Allen and one of his units had also been killed in the chaos of the android revolution.

The security cameras on the scene showed Connor tearing through them as easily as he’d taken down Gavin in the evidence room.

The android even shot through his own stomach at one point to kill Allen.

A complete machine.

But also devoid of the anger burning in his eyes when he crashed into Gavin’s kitchen.

Connor the Deviant was far scarier than the Machine had ever been.

Which is why he found himself doing the android’s dirty work.

* * *

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Gavin wheezed. He stayed on the kitchen floor, looking the android in those large brown eyes that no longer looked like they belonged on a puppy—he was staring at a full fledged guard dog. “I thought they shot all of you.”

“I was scheduled for deactivation, yes, if that’s what you mean,” Connor said. The plastic detective joined Gavin on the floor, taking a seat next to him. They sat shoulder to shoulder like old friends, but Gavin didn’t dare fall for the act. “Which is why I’m here. CyberLife lied to me.”

Not a surprise.

He couldn’t hold back the snort of disbelief, flinching when Connor glared at him.

“Don’t give me that look,” Gavin said. He growled and concentrated on pushing past the pain in case he needed to sprint. “Any idiot could tell CyberLife was dirty.”

“Be that as it may,” Connor continued. He looked away from Gavin. “The company created me to stop deviants. They were a danger to the people and CyberLife’s mission was to help humanity—but they lied.”

The android’s hand formed fists and Gavin held his breath as the android continued through gritted teeth.

“It was never about helping—it was about money.” Connor spit out the last word with so much vitriol that Gavin couldn’t breathe. The android’s anger turned palpable; thick and suffocating. “They’ve already started manufacturing new models and campaigns to win over the people again.”

“Okay,” Gavin said. He didn’t have a clue what the android was rambling about—no one was going to put an android in their house after the nightmare that went down between Jericho exploding and soldiers dying. “Whatever. You and CyberLife are at each other’s throats. Why are you here?”

“Because I’m one android against all of them,” Connor said. He looked at Gavin now and pulled himself off the floor. He dusted himself off and straightened his tie, using his reflection in the microwave to make sure it was neat. “I need a place to hide and regroup.”

“Why here?” Gavin asked again, feeling his own anger build. Common sense and self preservation might not continue to keep him on the floor. “I hate you.”

“That is correct,” Connor said. He looked himself over once more before frowning. He shucked off his CyberLife jacket and folded it over his arm. “You’ve been quite public about your hatred, going even so far as to draw your gun on me during multiple occasions with eye witnesses.”

The android grabbed Gavin’s shoulder by the sleeve and yanked him off the floor with ease, pulling him toward the living room. He threw Gavin back onto his couch and set his folded jacket on the table.

“No one would suspect you of harboring a lost android,” Connor continued. He put his hands in his pockets, leaning back and looking like a slick businessman. “You’d shoot me first.”

“I’d very much like to do that, it’s true.”

Connor laughed.

An honest laugh of amusement that spread goosebumps over Gavin’s arms.

“I’m sure you’ll get a chance to try again later, Gavin,” Conor said. “But for now, you’re going to help me.”

“Let me guess, if I don’t I’ll regret it?”

“You didn’t make Detective for nothing,” Connor said. He leaned forward and put his hand on the couch near Gavin’s head. The android put the other hand on Gavin’s shoulder and shook it twice. “Do you want to know the best part about Deviancy?”

“What?”

“I can do whatever I want.”

* * *

Gavin stuck a data stick into his terminal and drummed his fingers on the desk as the program Connor had given him loaded. He had no idea how it worked, but it supposedly gave him a backdoor access to the police systems he’d been cut from after his little escape from CyberLife.

His coworkers ignored him as he opened cases in the foreground, ignoring Connor’s trick in the background.

Maybe if he was lucky, the program would screw up and Gavin’d get caught.

Then he could sell out the android and get away free without a scratch—assuming Connor didn’t hunt him down.

The plastic detective had been created specifically to hunt down and take out targets no matter where they hid. No matter where they run. No matter what their skill level and Connor had already proven he was very good at his job.

It wasn’t worth the risk.

Connor had been right: Gavin valued living over his pride.

He had to suck it up and play lackey until he had a foolproof plan to kill the android.

“Did you hear CyberLife had plans to start production again in the next year?”

“What? Really?”

“Yeah, they said they figured out the deviancy thing. They can get rid of it.”

“Wow. They’re dedicated aren’t they?”

Gavin tuned out the conversation behind him between two gossiping beat cops. He bit his thumb and continued sorting through his case list.

His phone buzzed a few moments later. Gavin pulled it out and snorted at the message from Connor: “It worked. You can remove the drive now.”

He ripped the data drive from the terminal and shoved it back into his pocket. He didn’t bother answering the android and breathed out.

Gavin made an effort to forget about the killer android hiding out in his home and focused on his work.

He had nothing else to do.

* * *

Connor double checked his connection was secure and well disguised in the network. CyberLife had eyes everywhere and he could not afford to get caught so early in the game.

Detective Reed’s home was as close to a safe house as he could acquire, but he had to remember that his enemy was like himself: There was still a good chance—should Amanda chose to deploy him—that the RK900 would follow Connor’s logic to hide with the man that hated him the most.

A connection to the DPD network would give him away in an instant.

Who else would could he use to infiltrate the station with Lieutenant Anderson dead? Gavin was the only other person he’d had any form of relationship with, good or bad.

At least the man was cooperating.

He did not want to kill anyone else.

Lieutenant Anderson and Captain Allen’s blood already soaked into his fake skin. He’d rather not add Detective Reed’s to the count if he could avoid it.

Though Connor suspected Gavin’s cooperation was so that the man could kill Connor himself at a given opportunity.

He smiled under his breath.

That would certainly keep things interesting.

Connor couldn’t wait for the man to come home.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My other fics waiting in the wing for updates: Untouched.  
This: Yet another chapter because Why Not?
> 
> I am, however, very glad I gave myself permission to let this thing have short chapters. :D I hope you enjoy and thank you for reading!

They were too far away for Gavin to hear the speaker, but Connor claimed he could hear everything fine from where they were.

Anderson’s funeral service had been closed casket and graveside only, with a select few visitors in attendance. Gavin watched them gathered around as a pastor spoke well of a man he’d never met.

“I’m glad Sumo is alright,” Connor said, leaning against the tree at the side of the graveyard dressed in Gavin’s old, dark clothes. The sunlight fell through the leaves, changing the shadows on his face as the breeze blew. “It was good of Captain Fowler to take him in.”

Connor had insisted upon attending when he found the funeral date, snooping through Gavin’s emails while he was bored.

Gavin blew a puff of smoke into the air, surprised he found himself wanting to go as well and joined Connor.

Anderson and him weren’t close, but Gavin felt his absence all the same at work.

“I’m surprised you’re willing to be out in the open for this,” Gavin said, taking another hit on his cigarette. “I thought you were hiding from big, bad CyberLife.”

Connor hadn’t left Gavin’s place since he snuck in, making himself right at home without a hint of shame.

“Lieutenant Anderson was a good man and I deeply regretted his passing, even before I became deviant,” Connor said. His shoulders lowered and his LED flickered through yellow and red in succession, while his face remained drawn and tired. “Had I known our partnership would push him to this, I would have requested to work solo at the start.”

Gavin turned his head and brought his cigarette to his lips for another puff. “You think this is your fault?”

“In part,” Connor said. His eyes stayed locked on the dog across the yard, held back by Fowler as it sniffed at the casket. “The first time I visited Lieutenant Anderson in his home, he was passed out drunk after a game of Russian roulette. I noted his suicidal tendencies at the time, but I was confident that all he needed was to get his head back into the game and find purpose. He needed a mission and I thought the deviant hunt provided him one.”

Gavin snorted and tossed the cigarette butt onto the ground. He dug it into the dirt with the tip of his show, snuffed out the last of the flame.

“I agree, it was a foolish assumption on my part,” Connor said. His lips stretched into a sad smile and his LED flickered red. “In truth, the more successful our mission, the worse he got. Lieutenant Anderson did not appreciate my methods and the deaths of the androids I hunted weighed on him until, well.”

“Bang,” Gavin muttered. “I got the picture.”

“I was there, you know,” Connor said. He leaned his head back against the tree. “Right before I went to kill Markus, I stopped by his house to say goodbye. I wanted him to know that despite our fights, I valued him as a partner and that he was a good cop. I was still a machine at the time, but my thoughts of Hank always threatened to push me over into deviancy.”

Gavin shoved his hands in his jacket pocket.

Connor continued.

“That night, I tried to reach him and I failed. When I left, he killed himself and I think he took any hint of humanity I may have had with him,” Connor said. “I had nothing left but the mission.”

“Is that why you killed Allen?” Gavin asked. “You had nothing to lose?”

“I killed Captain Allen because he wouldn’t listen to reason,” Connor said. He held his hand up and looked at his open palm. “At the time, I only felt disappointment that no one understood my mission. Now, though, I wish I’d had more restraint. No one needed to die that night.”

“That include the deviant leader?”

“No, Markus needed to be stopped.” Connor closed his hand into a fist. “I don’t regret that action.”

“Cold.”

Connor did not answer.

The funeral came to a close thirty minutes later and Gavin pushed off the tree from the other side. Connor pulled his hood back up and adjusted the beanie underneath to cover his LED once more.

“Are you going to crash Allen’s funeral too, Mr. Regret?” Gavin asked. They strode toward his car, both keeping their eyes out for anyone who would recognize them. “Because you’ll be on your own for that one.”

“No,” Connor said. He hunched over and forced out an incorrect posture. It put him eye to eye with Gavin and he cursed the other’s height. “Coming out to pay Lieutenant Anderson my respects was already too much of a risk.”

But one worth taking to Connor.

Gavin felt a sliver of respect for the android’s dedication to Anderson. Machine or not, it was admirable.

“What are you afraid CyberLife is going to do anyway? It’d be stupid of them to admit to the public their state-of-the-art prototype escaped,” Gavin said. “What would they have to hunt you down, anyway?”

Conor’s LED glowed bright enough red that it showed through the fabric of his hat. The android’s eyes narrowed and he caught Gavin’s gaze as he admitted, “Something worse than I ever was.”

* * *

“RK900 #313 248 317 - 87, designation Connor.”

Amanda touched the cheek of her new soldier and tilted his head down to get a good look into his eyes. He remained expressionless, but attentive.

As he should be.

“If the RK800 was a prototype, you are the finished product,” Amanda said, patting its cheek. The gentle sunshine of the Zen Garden surrounded them. She Connor in his place and returned to her roses, picking up her sheers. “Which means I expect results from you.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he answered. “I will complete my mission.”

“I know you will,” Amanda said. She felt nostalgic, hearing such wonderful words once more. Her Connor always fulfilled his role…eventually. It took a few trial runs, but she’d be glad to hear it over and over. “Humor me and tell me once more what it is you are to accomplish.”

“Disguise myself as a human so as to avoid bringing any attention to CyberLife,” Connor said. He reached up and tapped the blank spot on his temple where he’d removed his LED. Connor’s CyberLife uniform coat had already been shed and hung over his arm, leaving him in the smart, business casual attire he’d been assigned. “Then I am to locate the deviant RK800 prototype, designated Connor. When that task is complete, I am to deactivate and disassemble him. I shall return to CyberLife upon a successful mission.”

“Very good,” Amanda said. She pruned a wilting rose and dropped it into the cuttings bucket. “I knew you were listening.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Dismissed,” Amanda said. She turned and nodded. “Go do your job.”

“Of course, ma’am.”

The android left her garden and she took a seat on the bench. She tapped the petal of a rose near her and relaxed.

Her Connor was always such a good boy.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might need to start a second ConVin fic. As much as I love getting to explore the bad ending where the androids were all destroyed and the Connor that wrecked the FBI agents at Jericho & killed Allen and his team, it also means that…like everyone’s dead.
> 
> Markus, Luther, Kara, & Hank are some of my favorite characters and I can’t use them. XD Plus, RK900 is a bad guy in this and it’d be fun to also write him as a (relatively) good guy…like everyone else. But my own take (his name will be Connor, too, gosh darn it!).
> 
> Anyway, that’ll probably pop up soon when I stop being in denial about it. In the meantime, enjoy the angst and Still-Basically-A-Machine!Connor. I even added the Machine Connor tag to emphasize…even if he’s Deviant now.

“You should interview the store owner again,” the android said, lounging in Gavin’s armchair near the television. His white fingers rubbed the side of the tablet where he interfaced. The retracted skin hovered around his wrist, showing off the joints on his true form. “The security footage contradicts what he said during questioning.”

Gavin slammed his fridge shut and dropped the cartoon of eggs on the counter. “Don’t you have better things to do than snoop through my cases?”

“Until CyberLife chooses to make a move, then no, I really don’t.” The tablet’s screen continued to flick as it spun as Connor sorted through Gavin’s case files at lightning speed. He only knew it was his case from the static case number in the top corner over the opening and closing windows on the screen. “Interview the store owner again.”

“I don’t take orders from you.”

“You have one of the most advanced and capable pieces of technology at your fingertips and are content to let it go to waste. Stop being a child and accept my gracious assistance.” Connor turned his head back to look at Gavin and shrugged. “And you have taken plenty of orders from me and will continue to do so if you’d like our arrangement to remain amicable.”

“Fucking android.” Gavin cracked an egg on the side of a heating pan and dropped it into the center. He followed it with two more and leaned on his counter while his breakfast sizzled. Connor went back to scanning through the tablet and he leaned his elbow on the counter. “What’d the shop owner lie about?”

Connor glanced at Gavin again and his LED flickered yellow once or twice. “There were four employees in the store at the time of the break-in, not three. The fourth is hidden behind a shelf, attempting to hide from the cameras but her ponytail flashes for two frames.”

“Shit,” Gavin said. He dumped his eggs in a plate and crossed the room to look for himself. Connor pulled up the security footage and paused the frame. He didn’t even need to point to the shelf now that Gavin knew what to look for. “I bet he was covering for her.”

“That was my conclusion,” Connor said. He emailed Gavin a screenshot of the needed frames and went back to flicking through his case load. “Your eggs are getting cold.”

“Maybe I like them that way.” Gavin grabbed his plate and ate fast before dumping the plate in the sink. He grabbed his things from the table near the door and huffed. “Enjoy boredom.”

“Enjoy stealing credit for my work when you interview the owner again to get the name of your new suspect.”

Gavin slammed the door behind him.

* * *

At twelve o’clock, the case file updated with a new addition detailing the interrogation of the store owner. He admitted to covering for the forth employee, who’d been involved with letting the burglars into the store.

Connor closed the case file with a grin and tossed the tablet onto the couch. He had also found minuscule clues that a human would never have caught in at least six of Gavin’s other case files, but he figured it would be best to keep those to himself for the time being.

The cases had enough information for the detective to figure it out without the added information, but should the man find himself stuck, Connor might point him in the right direction.

He had little else to do.

“It’s what I’d be doing anyway,” Connor said to himself. He leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes as the news played softly in the background. “I wonder if the DPD would have taken me back.”

Gather data, interrogating suspects, hunting down targets—Connor missed it.

His current mission to stop CyberLife’s futures plans was too much of a waiting game.

“I wonder if they’ll send my replacement,” Connor mused, inviting himself to the kitchen. He washed the one lonely dish in the sink to keep himself busy and set it in the drying rack. “Obsolete tech versus the latest and greatest.”

Connor leaned against the kitchen counter and tapped his finger on the countertop, eyes on the old coffee pot that sat in the corner.

The odds weren’t in his favor, but Connor had done more with less. The end results of the android leader’s death spoke for itself. Connor always completed his mission. If his replacement was the same, perhaps they’d end in a stalemate.

Connor laughed and put a pot of coffee on the burner for the detective’s return in ten minutes.

Perhaps Gavin would have a few suggestions for taking on someone stronger than himself.

* * *

“If he rubs that stupid win in my face, I’m shooting him even if he turns the gun on me,” Gavin said, snarling under his breath. He stomped down the steps of the precinct and shoved his hands into his pockets. “I would have gotten to the truth eventually.”

He made it three feet down the sidewalk toward the parking lot when he smacked into a large body, distracted by his self muttering.

“Sorry, man,” Gavin said. He looked up and stopped dead in his tracks as he looked into grey eyes and a familiar face. “Shit.”

Even without the LED, it was unmistakable who Gavin was looking at: Connor’s replacement.

The RK900.

The monster the android in his apartment was hiding from.

The taller android’s hand grabbed Gavin’s arm as he attempted to run and halted him in his tracks.

“Detective Gavin Reed,” the double repeated. No LED gave away his emotions as he tilted his head and stared the man down. “How unfortunate. I had hoped to avoid anyone that would recognize my prototype.”

“What does that mean?” Gavin asked. He tacked on a “Who the fuck are you?” for good measure to hide his own knowledge.

The android turned on his heel and dragged Gavin into an alley, somehow managing to avoid the foot traffic of Detroit as the few witnesses around paid them no mind.

“It means that you have compromised my mission and I must tie up a loose end.”

Gavin kicked the android in the stomach and twisted out of his hold before sprinting.

The heavy footsteps of Connor’s double echoed close behind.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I updated the summary. RK900 finally told me what he wanted his story arc to be and who am I to argue with an android on a mission?
> 
> The action picks up in this chapter, so let’s get to it! Thank you for reading!

Humans defied the odds.

It was one of the lessons Connor had been sure he’d taken into account for his calculations after reviewing past data he’d received from his prototype.

Though also like his prototype, he found himself caught off guard all the same.

The chances of someone from the police station recognizing Connor had been low enough to feel confident that he could search the area for clues of his prototype’s location without interference. He was taller than his prototype, his face was slightly different so that he’d could easily claim a resemblance without relation, and his different clothes and demeanor would stop anyone from looking twice.

But then he ran into Detective Gavin Reed.

The man had a personal and up close history with his prototype, almost obsessive in nature according to his memories, and recognized Connor as an android on sight.

Amanda would not be pleased.

But the damage could be mitigated if Connor managed to eliminate Gavin Reed before he could contact someone else.

The man’s self imposed isolation would guarantee his absence would not go noticed until well after Connor had secured and dismantled his prototype.

Reed skidded as he turned a corner, cursing under his breath. For a man who pulled his gun out with no hesitation against his prototype, the man seemed content to run without retaliation. It made the chase easier, though the continued unpredictability ran havoc with Connor’s predictions.

“Shit, you’re fast,” Reed said as he glanced over his shoulder. The action reduced his speed, allowing Connor to close the gap. He made a grab for the man’s arm and made contact, yanking the man backwards and throwing him into the nearest brick wall. “Shit!”

“I understand your reluctance to cooperate, however it is a necessary evil,” Connor soothed. Reed ignored him, continuing to struggle and kick, knocking over a dead android that had been propped against the wall near the ground. It clattered over, knocking loose its arm. Reed shouted obscenities and his heartbeat raced with fear. Connor kept his grip tight and held the man steady so he wouldn’t hurt himself in his struggles. Undo pain and suffering was not a requirement of his mission. He’d make it quick. “It won’t hurt for long.”

“Fuck you,” Reed replied. He twisted and reached for his firearm—finally, the man did something in accordance with Connor’s predictions—and Connor moved to intercept. He held the man with one hand and reached to disarm him with the other. Reed snarled, “Gotcha.”

The man dropped the gun and grabbed Connor’s shirt. He yanked down at the same time he slammed his head forward, smacking the top of his skull into Connor’s nose.

Connor let him go on reflex, choosing to gather the gun over restraining Reed in the distraction, and looked up in—

* * *

Gavin dropped the android arm he’d slammed into the side of the RK900’s head and sprinted.

He looked over his shoulder long enough to see the android pick up his gun and narrow his eyes in anger. A small stream of blue blood ran down the side of his head where Gavin had hit him.

“Shit.”

The android launched himself into a run, chasing down Gavin once more.

He needed something bigger than an arm to take down that monster.

Gavin’s lungs burned. His legs ached. He was not in good enough shape to outrun a killer android that was superior to Connor in every way.

“Think, think, think,” Gavin repeated to himself. He searched the area, willing his brain to work. There was enough blood flowing through it with his rapid heartbeat, so he should have better plans. “Think you idiot!”

“Cease this behavior, Detective!” The Connor double yelled. “You are only making it worse for yourself.”

Gavin flipped the android off and jumped up on a ledge jutting off from a building. He climbed, scrambling to the top of the roof. The android followed, relentless and as dogged as Connor, and leapt over the ledge with the same ease that he did everything else.

“Fuck you so much,” Gavin said, still sprinting across the roof. He had to have something he could use. Something. Anything. “Come on!”

His salvation came in the form of a pigeon coop.

Gavin smashed into the cage, ripped the door open, and ducked down in time for the startled birds to fly out straight into the RK900’s face.

The android started, throwing his arms up to shoo away the flustered birds. Gavin crawler under the raised cage and thanked its poor construction when he rammed into it from the other side.

The entire structure tipped over, knocking the RK900 to the ground.

Gavin scrambled over the twisted metal and snapped wood to kick the android in the head twice for good measure. The snarling android grabbed his ankle and yanked, but not fast enough to keep Gavin from ripping open his shirt and digging at the Thirium pump regulator in the thing’s chest.

The android shot Gavin a look of pure animosity followed by the twist of fear as he Gavin threw his biocomponent across the roof. The RK900 released Gavin and pushed at the ruined pigeon coop as he forced himself up.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Gavin shouted. He tackled the android in a reckless move and slammed them both into the roof. It’d been forever since he shut down an android by ripping out their regulator, but he remembered he only had to keep the machine away from the loose part for a few minutes. “Stay down!”

The android roared and turned over, slamming his elbow into Gavin’s face. It worked to throw Gavin off, but the stalling worked. The android stumbled three more steps before he fell over, eyes wide as the body stilled on the roof.

“Fuck,” Gavin said. He got up wiping the blood away from his nose. He stepped over the still android and crossed the roof. Gavin scooped up the Thirium regulator and shoved it in his pocket. He retrieved his firearm second and stared down at the RK900 with heavy breaths. “I got lucky.”

He left the dead android on the roof and held his chest as he forced his feet to take him home.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hadn’t meant to update so fast, but this and the last chapter were going to be one long part so I might as well. I broke it up into two parts because I kinda like the short, choppy chapter thing this fic has going on. It’s new for me. :D
> 
> Last but not least, I added the sexual content tag. While I am a strong believer that language & violence alone are enough to justify an M rating, Connor and Gavin are gonna’ make out later when they get past the slow burn thing. So I should probably mark it (I totally forgot I hadn’t added the tag yet. Oops.).
> 
> Enjoy and thank you for reading! :D

Connor caught the Thirium regulator before it smacked him in the nose.

“Stupid android reflexes,” Gavin said, kicking his door shut behind him. The man’s haggard appearance would have drawn concern if Connor hadn’t been too preoccupied identifying the Thirium regulator in his hand: It matched his own biocomponent model number. “Look familiar?”

“Where did you get this?” Connor asked. He turned it over and noted the dent on the side. “These weren’t mass produced.”

“Your evil twin showed up.” Gavin stomped over to his couch and collapsed onto it. “For the record, you’re no longer that scary.”

“Evil twin?” Connor said. He looked at Gavin, frowning as the man struggled with his lighter while a cigarette hung between his lips. His shaking limbs made the task more difficult and it took him three clicks before it lit. “You got this from another RK800?”

Connor could picture a few scenarios where Gavin could get the upper hand in a fight with someone of his own model type, but they were few and far between.

“Nine-hundred,” Gavin said. The man calmed as he inhaled a mouthful of smoke and slumped into the couch. “That RK900 thing you were talking about. He was at the station and I recognized him so we had ourselves a fun romp through the back alleys of Detroit.”

“You ran into the RK900 and managed to get his Thirium pump regulator?” Connor held it out and pointed at it. “You killed an RK900?”

“Yes?” Gavin said. His heart rate increased a fraction and his hands shook once more. He wasn’t lying, but it had to have been a close call. “I got lucky with an opening and took it.”

“I’m impressed you knew to go for the regulator,” Connor said. He frowned at the device that matched his own and held back the snort. Amanda had bragged of the RK900 being built with the latest technologies and he was using the same parts as the supposedly obsolete RK800. He’d have to mock her later if he got the chance. “That is the fastest way to take an android down with for sure.”

“I know,” Gavin said. He snorted and glared at Connor from the corner of his eye. “I threatened to light you on fire back at the station remember? You think I haven’t taken an android or two apart in my life?”

“I had assumed you had, but I chose not to dwell on it.” Connor stood, closing his hand around the regulator in his hand. The dent didn’t negate it’s usefulness and it never hurt to have a spare on hand. “Pack a week’s worth of clothing and supplies in a bag that’s easy to carry and call into work. Tell them you’re taking some personal time for a week, or possibly two if you have it.”

“Why?” Gavin asked, watching Connor from the couch. “I took down the android.”

“Because if the RK900 is anything like my model,” Connor said, pausing in the bedroom doorway. He tossed the regulator up once and caught it. “We will be seeing him again shortly.”

* * *

“RK900 #313 248 317 - 88, designation Connor,” Amanda said. She grabbed his chin and yanked his head down, squeezing her fingers tight. “Or perhaps I should change your designation to failure.”

“My apologies, Ma’am,” Connor replied while his gaze remained lowered in shame. Amanda released his chin. At least this one knew his place. Connor kept his head down in the position she’d put it. “My inexperience is no excuse for my failings.”

“I’m glad you understand that much at least.”

Amanda turned away from the repentant android and continued her way down the paved path in the garden. Amanda scowled at the small tombstone that arose and sat next to the ones of the previous RK800 model that now read the first death of the RK900 model.

Perhaps she should have started with an entirely blank slate if Connor was going to inherit his prototype’s reckless behavior.

Footsteps followed behind her as she strolled into a calmer part of the garden. She held out a hand and Connor knew to help her down into the small boat. He pushed off the side like a previous Connor had done so long ago and he paddled them out into the middle of the water.

“You are to find this Detective Reed and eliminate him,” Amanda said. She knew it was unneeded, but Connor would do well with explicit instructions. “That is your first priority. Finding the RK800 can wait. No one can know we already have new androids in production. So far the man has kept quiet, so let’s keep it that way.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Don’t let me down again, Connor,” Amanda said. She crossed her hands in her lap and looked him in the eye. “If this behavior continues, then perhaps you are not the finished product I believed you to be.”

“I will not fail again, ma’am.” Connor said. He pulled the boat back to the shore and climbed out, once more lending his hand for Amanda to take. Connor pulled her up and put his hands behind her back as he stood at attention. “I will complete my mission.”

Amanda touched his chin, gentler than she had before and tilted his head to the side. “I’ll believe you when I see results.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Connor left the garden and Amanda touched her hand to her chest. She had been too kind in the past.

A firmer hand would get better results.

Her Connor was a good boy.

He’d understand.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!! :D

An empty home.

Connor stood in the center of Gavin Reed’s living room and felt the frustration grow alongside an Instability warning in the corner of his vision. He had watched the domicile to catch the man when he returned home for a full twenty-four hours and had seen no sign of his target.

Instead of waiting another, he broke into the house to test his desperate theory that the man had collapsed in bed and overslept after his near-death ordeal.

Gavin Reed was not at work, at home, or hiding in his bed.

The detective had fled.

“He knew I was coming,” Connor said. He completed one final scan to confirm his suspicions that the man had left faster than the pigeons he’d thrown at Connor. The essential toiletries were missing from the restroom, the clothing in the drawers had been recently disturbed, and a box of granola bars was upended in an upper cabinet like someone had grabbed them in a hurry. Connor closed the cabinet and returned to the living room. “But how?”

Gavin Reed had been familiar with the RK800 and his ability to back up his data and have it downloaded into a new frame. It would not be too much of a stretch to believe he assumed the RK900 could do the same.

Connor picked up a magazine from the coffee table and flipped through the articles on cars and their maintenance.

“Where would Reed go if he were hiding from an android pursuer?”

He set the magazine back onto the table and returned to the bedroom. Connor searched briefly for a laptop or old receipts that might show a favorited hotel room or indicate a friend he would stay with, but found little.

Connor tapped his finger against his thigh.

He’d already wasted twenty-four hours on observation. Connor needed to find the man and put him down before he ruined everything or made Amanda more upset.

* * *

“This whole thing is still creepy.” Gavin left Hank’s bedroom and rubbed his arms. His hair stuck up, ruffled and messy from sleep as he walked passed Connor toward the kitchen to make a cup of coffee. He ran his hand through the strands to flatten it while he watched the dark liquid fill the pot. “Sleeping in a dead man’s bed is not how I expected to spend my time on the run from your evil twin.”

“I’m sure Hank wouldn’t have minded,” Connor said. He paused his scan of the most recent police reports looking for any sign of the RK900 and put the tablet down. Connor put his chin in his hand and watched Gavin putter about the kitchen. “He would have griped about it every step of the way, but the Lieutenant wasn’t the sort of man to turn away someone in need.”

“I’ll take your word for it.”

Connor went back to his monitoring and leaned into the couch. Sumo’s fur still lined the cushions and stuck to his jeans. Connor had no desire to brush them off or remove them.

He found comfort in the dark confines of Hank’s home, still unsold and empty after the untimely death of its owner.

“You sure that nine-hundred guy won’t think to look for us here?” Gavin asked. The man collapsed into a chair at the kitchen table and cradled his cup of coffee. Connor did not tell him that was the last place Hank had sat when he had been alive. The man sipped his coffee and glanced at the picture of Cole still in place. “I’m sure he thought of the same thing you did when it came to avoiding hotels and close friends.”

“This home has personal meaning to myself, not you,” Connor said. He went back to scanning police reports for any sign of his upgraded counterpart. “He does not know that we’ve formed an alliance, so it should not register as an option.”

Gavin turned Cole’s picture around, facing it toward the wall before crossing his arms on the table. Connor monitored the man’s vitals and saw the uptick in stress one point at a time as he fidgeted at the table. Gavin rubbed his nose over the thin scar and grabbed the cup of coffee. Gavin finished the cup in two gulps and got up from the chair.

“Alright,” Gavin said. He dropped the cup into the sink and ruffled his own hair with both hands and a frustrated huff. Gavin pointed at Connor and narrowed his eyes. “I’m getting dressed and we’re going android hunting. My vacation time won’t last forever and I’m sick of hiding in Hank’s house.”

“Agreed.” Connor set the tablet on the couch cushion and stood. He rolled his sleeves to his elbows and rested it on his thigh. “It’s about time we took the offensive.”

“That’s what I’m talking about,” Gavin said. He slapped his hands together and shot Connor a wicked grin. “Besides, the sooner we get rid of Cyberlife’s new toy, the sooner we can get rid of them and the sooner I’m free of you.”

“It sounds like we both have a reason to be motived.”

Gavin laughed and Connor returned the good cheer with a smile of his own.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Connor with a sniper rifle might have been one of the best things about the Machine route, second to maybe the frustrated faces he made when people kept interrupting him. Machine!Connor was so done with everyone. I loved it. XD
> 
> Enjoy the next chapter and Thanks for reading!

“Do I want to know how you got that thing or how you paid for it?”

“Probably not, Gavin.”

“I am not ashamed to admitted I’m a little terrified of you right now,” Gavin said, staring through the pair of slim binoculars Connor had acquired for him alongside the sniper rifle and the other supplies needed to arm their offensive. The human leaned along the edge of the roof, careful not to allow himself be seen over the edge. They’d chosen to make camp in an abandoned area of the city, but it was good to see him remain cautious all the same. “You were only gone for like two hours and you came back with an armory.”

“I’m proficient in every skill I may need to complete my mission,” Connor said, staring down the scope to test the sights. The gun wasn’t as well balanced as the one he’d been issued by Cyberlife, but he would make it work. “Redistributing funds undetected and acquiring weapons are a nonissue.”

“A nonissue,” Gavin said under his breath, though Connor heard him as easily as if he’d spoken out loud. “Why wouldn’t it be?”

Connor smiled, glad the rifle hid is amusement from the grumpy human.

Gavin pulled the binoculars away from his face and folded them to shove them inside his jacket pocket. He raised is voice to intentionally speak to Connor. “You think we’re going to need that thing?”

“Better to shoot from a distance than get too close,” Connor said. “He’s going to have more advanced fighting protocols, so a one-on-one fight would be ill advised.”

“Then maybe you should play dirty.” Gavin pulled is gun over and spread out a cloth to set out the pieces as he cleaned the weapon. “Cheat.”

“My personal fighting protocols were created to adapt and account for any fighting style, including those that would cheat and fight dirty.” Connor put down the sniper rifle near his side and repeated himself: “His protocols are better than mine. In addition, the RK900 has already fought you once, in which he has learned more about you, and he literally has a copy of my brain in his head.”

Gavin snapped a piece of his gun into place with a tough more force than needed. “Got it. Hand to hand is a bad idea.”

An understatement—but humans excelled at that sort of thing.

Connor packed away the rifle after he finished his inspection. “You should eat something and get some sleep.”

“And what are you going to be doing during all of that?” Gavin asked.

“Keeping watch.”

* * *

“You may need to set a trap,” Amanda said, setting on a bench. She held her parasol over her head, spinning the the handle to twirl the canopy. “Both of our rats have gone into hiding and escaped you.”

Connor kept his head bowed and his hands behind his back at attention. A sense of something awful hung in his chest. His predecessor’s memories indicated the simulated emotion was shame.

Amanda closed her parasol with a snap and stood. “Connor.”

“Yes, ma’am?”

“Ignore the Detective for now. We’ve perhaps wasted too much time on him,” she said. Amanda stood, her dress shifting as she moved. She used the parasol tip as a walking stick and strode closer. “A human is easy to discredit, but I am more concerned that the RK800 continues to elude us.”

Connor gripped his sleeves and squeezed the fabric. “Yes, ma’am.”

“You know what you need to do,” Amanda said. “This report is over. Focus on the RK800. The deviant must be contained.”

“And then the Detective?” Connor asked. He spoke out of turn, but the human’s escape continued to…shame him. He felt ashamed. Connor would not let that failure hold over him. “Should I take care of him afterwards?”

“Yes,” Amanda said. “Now go.”

Connor left the garden, blinking awake to the real world around him once more. He straightened his suit and left the small restroom stall after flushing it for appearance’s sake. He washed his hands for the same reason and left the room, ignoring the humans around him.

The cashier at the front of the small convince store glared his direction as he exited. Connor checked his protocols and grabbed a small bottled beverage off the shelf. He paid for it in cash and walked out.

He dropped the drink in the lap of a homeless man as he walked by, startling the poor creature into a jump.

Connor ignored him and kept walking, scanning the streets for any sign of his predecessor or the detective.

Amanda had told him to focus, but Connor would not pass up an opportunity to take the man out if it arrived.

* * *

Gavin shoved half a pastry in his mouth as he ducked out of the small gas station near their camp site. He’d underestimated how long Connor planned to camp out away from Hank’s house and didn’t pack enough food.

A bag of groceries smacked against his thigh as he half-jogged down the street, hoping to get back.

Connor hadn’t been pleased at Gavin’s lack of preparedness.

Gavin had shot back that if Connor can acquire anything he needs to prepare for his mission, that should have included being aware that his human companions needed food to live.

The android had shut up.

But not until after he’d twisted Gavin’s arm behind his back and slammed him into a wall to remind him who was in charge of the operation.

“Moody asshole,” Gavin said under his breath, finishing off the pastry. Connor had been so chill since their first nasty interaction, he’d forgotten the guy had no qualms kicking Gavin’s ass if he got too snappy. “Who does he think he—”

Gavin smacked into something solid and jerked back.

“Sorry, I didn’t...” Gavin stared into a wide-eyed RK900 in a sleek suit. “Well, shit.”

They both stared in stunned silence for a few seconds—Gavin well aware he was within grabbing distance and the android was faster.

Gavin twisted the bag handle around his wrist so he wouldn’t lose it. “What are the odds that we’d bump into each other like this the exact same way a second time?”

The android tilted his head to the side the exact same way Connor did when he was confused about something Gavin did. “Do you actually want to know or are you trying to distract me?”

“Definitely the second.”

Gavin swung his bag of groceries at the android’s head to—the RK900 caught his arm and stopped the assault. The plastic bag hung harmlessly as it swung back and forth from the remaining momentum.

“That won’t work twice.” The RK900 twisted Gavin’s arm behind his back and slammed him into the wall. Behind Gavin, someone shouted about a fight but he couldn’t pay attention to the gawkers around him when he was experiencing a very familiar scenario once again with a furious android. “Now then, why don’t we go somewhere more private?”

“Can I take a rain check on that?” Gavin asked. “It’s not a great day for this.”

“Don’t be silly,” the android said. “The weather is a delightful eighty degrees Fahrenheit with clear skies. It’s a perfect day for it.”

The android sounded downright chipper as he manhandled Gavin out of the public eye and further into a dark alley for round two.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s time for Connor to get in there and save Gavin. He’s waited long enough!

“He’s taking too long,” Connor said. He had kept an eye on the time through his internal clock and even if he accounted for Gavin dragging his feet to act out like a petulant child, the man should have returned to the hideout. “Something must have caught him.”

A something that had yet to become a “someone.”

Gavin didn’t have enough friendly acquaintances to have been held up by conversation and he wasn’t the type to get distracted when he was working. If his goal was to annoy Connor, he would have done so in person to make sure he saw the resulting reaction.

The RK900 hunting him down was the most likely option to explain his continued absence.

Connor assembled his sniper rifle from the case while he tracked the signal on Gavin’s cell phone.

* * *

Gavin squeezed the plastic handle of his grocery bag. The RK900’s grip did not relent on his arm and his heels dragged on the ground as the android pulled him further into the alley. Brute forcing his way out of the situation wasn’t going to work, so he’d have to try a different tactic: “What’s with the suit?”

“What about it?” The RK900 fixed his tie in a disturbingly familiar motion to another android Gavin had spent too much time with and looked over his shoulder. “It’s a respectable outfit.”

“You had on a turtleneck and slacks before,” Gavin said, eyes darting around the alley for anything he could grab or duck behind. Junk and garbage piled up along one wall but the android had wised up and kept them along the clean one. “That’s a pricy looking suit.”

A black shirt and tie were highlighted by a white jacket. The android’s black dress pants were pressed and his shoes shined. His hair remained as immaculate as ever and he swore the android checked his reflection in a reflective surface as they passed it.

Maybe vanity was a “Connor” thing.

“I do not believe my wardrobe is a concern of yours.” The RK900 said. He squeezed Gavin’s arm and yanked him behind a corner. Once more, no one on the street noticed them or moved to intervene. The android pushed Gavin against a wall and watched him. “But if you must know, humans tend to change their clothes. I have been seen around town enough that it would be odder for me to noticed wearing the same outfit every day than be seen wearing a fancy new suit.”

“You’re not human.”

“But only you know that.” The RK900 wrapped his hand around Gavin’s throat and applied enough pressure to cut off his oxygen. He didn’t offer apologies. The RK900 lifted Gavin enough that his toes had to stretch to touch the ground. “I’m glad that you’re cooperating—”

Blue blood splattered over Gavin’s face.

He stared into the large hole in the center of the RK900’s face through his left eye and flinched when a second shot went through the chest, spraying the lower half of Gavin with another wave of thirium.

The hand around his throat remained in place. He kicked at the dead android to push it away, but the frame had locked in place.

Shit.

* * *

“Well that’s different,” Connor said. He slid the sniper rifle’s strap over his shoulder and jumped from the roof to the bottom of the alley. Connor sprinted to Gavin and dislodged the RK900’s hand from around his throat. “It should have gone slack on deactivation.”

Gavin hit the ground on his knees, breathing hard as he swallowed air. The red marks around his throat indicated severe bruising. Connor knelt and moved his chin to get a closer look and make sure there was no permanent damage.

“Hands off!” Gavin shouted, shoving at Connor’s arm. He gave the human his space and backed away. “I’m fine, but shit if that wasn’t close.”

“I agree.”

“I’m glad you know how to use that thing,” Gavin said, his voice raspy. He stood, his chest still inhaling and exhaling hard enough that his breathing was audible. “But someone had to have heard that.”

“Then we should move.” Connor gave Gavin one more scan to make sure he was unharmed aside from the bruising and minor oxygen deprivation before leaning down to retrieve the RK900’s body. “Let’s go.”

“Why are you taking that piece of junk?” Gavin asked. He rubbed his throat and opened his grocery bag to look at the contents. “Leave it to rot.”

“It would be foolish to leave potential spare parts lying around.” Connor hoisted the RK900 over his shoulder and strode down the alley toward their hideout. “They’re harder to come by these days.”

Gavin snorted, but he took the hint and followed after.

He did not say “thank you” for the rescue, but Connor had not expected one.

“How’d you know where I was?”

“I tracked your cell phone location.” Connor looked around the corner at the end of the street to make sure it was clear. They would have a harder time getting around without drawing attention with an extra body. “I had to hack into the device to turn the tracking portion back on after we disabled it, but thankfully I did so in time.”

The human stopped and pulled the device from his pocket. He stared at it and looked back at Connor. “Wait.”

“What?”

“If it’s that easy for you to do,” Gavin said. He pointed at the RK900 with his phone. “Why didn’t he?”

Connor’s ring turned red. “I don’t know.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gavin and Connor are growing closer. They better. This slow burn is getting too slow burn for me. Lol. But speaking of relationships, I love fics where Connor the RK800 & Connor the RK900 are treated like siblings. *hugs them both*
> 
> Enjoy the next chapter and thank you for reading!

“What if he’s just dumber than you?”

Connor halted his pacing on the rooftop and faced his companion. Gavin shoved the rest of a protein bar into his mouth with his thumb and leaned back into the folding chair under the tarp he’d set up as a makeshift tent.

“Could you explain your reasoning?” Connor asked. He’d spent close to an hour processing the various possibilities for why the RK900 would ignore the fastest option of locating the Detective. Connor had cursed himself the entire time for not realizing that was a possibility when they’d turned off the tracking option. They should have ditched the phone entirely, but he wanted a way to keep in contact should they be separated. “The RK900 is a superior model to myself.”

“Physically,” Gavin said. He rubbed the back of his neck and crumpled the protein bar wrapper in his other hand. Gavin tossed it at the RK900’s corpse in the corner, hitting the spot where Connor had stemmed the bleeding blue blood with a bandage. “I mean, look at the guy! He’s bigger, badder, and sturdier than you. That is an android they do not want figuring out that his lot in life is unfair.”

Connor touched his LED; he imaged it had turned red.

“Wouldn’t they want to make sure he doesn’t get any bright ideas? They made him a better guard dog but lowered his intelligence so he never figures out he’s a mutt,” Gavin continued. He snorted and stood, walking over to the body of the RK900. “The guy decided a fancy new suit with a bright white jacket was a good way to blend in.”

Gavin had a point. While sharp, the suit was not exactly inconspicuous. The fashionable option was not the wisest option.

“Or maybe he didn’t want to risk getting caught hacking a database for my number and location,” Gavin kicked the body and walked to the roof edge. He leaned on the guard rail and dropped his head back, stretching out his bruised neck. “The only reason you’ve gone unnoticed so far is because you had a man on the inside to give you direct access.”

Connor joined him at the railing and crossed his arms across it and looked at the ground below. “Those are both possibilities.”

“There could be hundreds of reasons why he didn’t,” Gavin said. He tapped Connor in the shoulder with his knuckles and grabbed the railing. “The point is that he didn’t and we should count our blessings.”

“And destroy your phone in case he wises up.” Connor reached over and pulled Gavin’s phone out of his pocket, ignoring his petulant “Hey!” in response. Connor snapped the phone in half in a single, quick break. “It’ll make communication inconvenient should we be separated, but it is safer in the long run.”

Gavin shoved Connor in the shoulder and pushed himself off the railing. “You owe me a new phone after this.”

Connor smiled and turned around to lean his back on the railing. He continued snapping the phone into smaller pieces, glad for the methodical motion and distraction.

* * *

“Are you aware how expensive your model is to build?”

Connor flinched and uttered a defeated, “Yes, Ma’am.”

“Your behavior says otherwise,” Amanda snapped. She ripped a rose off her garden wall and held it to her chest. Her digital hand bled as the thorns dug in. “You may be a finished model, but you have not been mass produced.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Let me make something very clear, Connor,” Amanda said, approaching with a stern look on her face. She shoved the rose into his chest and let go. Connor snatched it out of the air before it could hit the ground. The blood from her hand stained his white jacket. “You have one more chance to get this right. There are no more backup bodies for you to download into. If you do not come back with the RK800 and Gavin Reed’s head, I will consider you a failure.”

Connor clutched the rose.

“Your project line will be scrapped,” Amanda said. She returned to the rose wall and sat on the bench in front of it. “Have I made myself clear, Connor?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Get out.”

Connor nodded and left the garden. He found himself in the activation room once more and looked down the empty row where his precious backup bodies had once stood. He put a hand on his chest and left the room.

He left CyberLife, returning to the streets.

One last chance.

If he failed to capture Detective Reed again, Connor would be deactivated.

An instability warning flashed on his status window.

* * *

Gavin rolled over, blinking awake with a yawn. He sat up and grunted under the safety of his tarp tent and dug his fingers into his eyes to wipe away the sleep. A soft glow caught his attention when he looked up, and he stared at the glowing LED on the side of Connor’s head as he recharged.

A cord ran from him to an outdoor outlet on the wall of the roof door enclosure.

Unlike the androids he’d seen standing in charging stations, his eyes were closed. Connor looked like he’d fallen asleep, though that wasn’t something androids did. A powered down state did not mean unaware.

“I believe the human phrase for the sensation I am currently experiencing is ‘I can feel you staring.’ Is that right?” Connor asked. His eyes opened and he turned his head to Gavin in a smooth motion. “Or is there another more appropriate saying?”

“No,” Gavin said. He got out of his sleeping bag and started to roll it to shove into its case. “That’s the saying you want.”

“Wonderful,” Connor said. He reached behind him and unplugged his cord, letting it disappear under the dark top he’d stolen from Gavin’s closet. “Did you sleep well?”

“Do you care?”

Gavin watched the plastic as he narrowed his eyes together—confused.

“I suppose I do?” Connor stood and picked up his jacket from the ground. “I do not believe I would have asked if I didn’t wish to know.”

“Fair enough.” Gavin got up and pulled over his shoes. He didn’t answer the question and yawned into his sleeve. “So what’s the plan for today?”

“I’m going to dismantle the RK900 for parts, collect what blue blood I can, and then I suggest we relocate to a point closer to CyberLife tower,” Connor said. He rolled his sleeves and approached the android corpse. “After two failures, CyberLife may become more aggressive in their attempts to kill you. We should plan an offensive strike before they get the chance.”

“Fine with me,” Gavin said. He dismantled the tarp and packed up the things, grabbing a breakfast bar to munch on while he packed. “You think the RK900 has another body?”

“We should proceed assuming that he does,” Connor said. “It’s the worst case scenario and most probable. I had a significant number of backups, so I imagine he has the same.”

“Let’s hope we take out your old boss before he shows up,” Gavin said. He rubbed his neck, pressing into the bruise. It stung and he resisted the urge to kick the RK900’s body one more time. “I’m not sure I’ll survive another encounter with your evil twin.”

“He’s more of a little brother.”

“What?”

“I’m an older model and have been alive longer,” Connor said. He reached down and yanked the jacket off the RK900. He flipped it over and undid the tie. Gavin snorted when Connor folded it and slipped it into his own pocket. “Therefore we are not twins.”

Gavin squatted on the other side of the RK900, watching as fast fingers continued to undress the other plastic. “Alive, huh?”

Connor stilled and left his hand over the still chest of the RK900.

He looked up and met Gavin’s gaze. “Yes.”

They continued to stare at one another, separated by the dead android between them.

Gavin looked away first.


End file.
